Guinness Barbecue Sauce

It’s grillin’ season, and grillin’ season requires gallons of barbecue sauce for slathering. We mop barbecue sauce on just about everything. It’s Squirrel’s favorite condiment. I love the deep, bold flavor that barbecue sauce adds to just about any cut of meat. It really enhances a recipe.

The other day I made baby back ribs and was going to slather them with one of my favorite store-bought sauces, Sweet Baby Ray’s. Man, I love that sauce. Their honey chipotle is finger lickin’ tasty.

I opened the fridge to grab my beloved Sweet Baby Ray’s when I noticed one lonely bottle of Guinness sitting patiently in the very back of the refrigerator, staring out and looking unloved. I knew it was there; I just didn’t know what to do with it. I’m not even sure why I originally purchased it, considering I don’t drink the stuff straight up. It was ignored, pushed to the side, and hidden behind a jar of pickles. It sat there so long that it began to ferment and get stronger.

After staring at the deprived bottle of stout for a few seconds, a light bulb went off. I quickly sat the Sweet Baby Ray’s down and grabbed the bottle Guinness.

I started by cooking some onions, green peppers, and garlic. I add the Guinness and reduced it by half, which yielded a rich, dark sauce. The addition of molasses and brown sugar sweetened the sauce and gave it that ubiquitous sticky texture that caramelizes perfectly when slathered on meat and grilled.

This will be your new favorite sauce to grill with.

This sauce takes very little effort to throw together. It’s so simple, I made it on a Monday evening after work.

Baby back ribs never tasted so good. Enjoy!

Guinness Barbecue Sauce

Recipe Type: Sauce

Author: Jennie

Prep time: 5 mins

Cook time: 25 mins

Total time: 30 mins

Serves: 2 cups

Ingredients

1 tablespoon canola oil

1/4 cup green pepper, finely chopped

1/2 cup onion, finely chopped

2 garlic cloves, minced

1/2 teaspoon red pepper flakes

1 1/2 cups Guinness

1 cup ketchup

1/3 cup brown sugar

1/4 cup molasses

2 tablespoons apple cider vinegar

1 teaspoon ground mustard

1/4 teaspoon cayenne (optional)

Salt & pepper

Instructions

Heat the canola oil in a medium-sized saucepan over medium heat. Add the green peppers, onions, garlic, red pepper flakes, and a pinch of salt and pepper. Cook, stirring occasionally, until the vegetables are tender, about 4 minutes.

Turn the heat up to medium-high. Take the saucepan off of the heat and add the Guinness. Place the pot back on the burner and reduce to half, about 10 minutes.

This looks super-duper delicious, and easy to make. I’ll have to try my hand at making my own since I’m about to run out of my favourite store-bought brand, the Tonton Kobe – which in all honesty is better for marinating than for basting.